Valve-gear for steam-engines.



I H. K. BENTE. VALVE GEAR FOR STEAMVENGINES. APPLIUATION FILED OUT. 22,1912.

' PatentedAug. 5, 1913,

a SfiEETS-SHEET 1.

Attorneys H. K. BENTR' VALVE GEAR FOR STEAM ENGINES.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 22, 1912.

Patented Aug. 5 1913.

a SHEETS-SHEET 2.

\\N N \N $1 m l I I Y Q N I Inventor Attorneys H. K. BENTE.

VALVE GEAR FOR STEAM ENGINES.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 22, 1912. 1 ,069,224:. Patented Aug. 5, 1913 3 SHEBTS$HEET 3 Attorneys UNlTED s'rarns 1mm FFICE.

HENRY K. BENTE, 0F SEDALIA, MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR 0F ONE-THIRD TO HARRY L. WILLIAMS, OF SEDALIA, MISSOURI.

VALVE-GEAR FOR STEAM-ENGINES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed October 22, 1912.

Patented Aug. 5,1913.

Serial No. 727,255.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY K. BENTE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Sedalia, in the county of Pettis and State of Missouri, have invented a new and useful Valve Gear for Steam Engines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in valve gears for steam engines, the primary object of the invention being the provision of means whereby the travel of the steam control valve is readily varied to control the admission and exhaust steam to the cylinder and consequently the speed of the engine.

A further object of the present invention is the provision of means so that the mo- ,ment the piston has approached either end of the cylinder, any back pressure within the cylinder will be eliminated.

With the foregoing and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed can be made within the scope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of the invention.

In the drawingsFigure 1 is a side elevation of the preferred form of the gear, an engine cylinder being shown in longitudinal section and a portion of a drive wheel also being shown. Fig. 2 is a detailed perspective view of the slotted guide for the adjustable block with a portion of its extension or lever. Fig. 3 is a detailed perspective view of the adjustable block and portions of the two rods connected thereto. Fig. 4 is a similar view to Fig. 1, illustrating a moditied and simpler form of gear. Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic top plan view of the cylinders and drive wheels of a locomotive, the drive rods being in extreme forward and rearward positions, respectively.

Referring to the drawings, and more particularly to Figs. 1, 2 and 3, the numeral 1 designates the cylinder, in which is mounted for reciprocation the usual piston 2, while carried by the cylinder is the steam chest 3, having the two ports a and b, one of which is the exhaust when the other is the inlet port, and vice versa, and the central exhaust port 00. In the chest 3 is mounted the valve 4, and connected to the valve for reciprocating the same in proper time, is the rod 5, which is also slidingly mounted in the bracket 3. The guide-way 7 is carried by the cylinder, and in it is mounted the, usual cross-head 8, to which is connected the drive rod 9, leading back to and prop erly connected to the drive wheel 10.

Secured fast to the outer end of the guide-way 7 and substantially perpendicular thereto is the upright or support 11, to which is pivotally connected by means of the pin 12 and for swinging movement the slotted head or guide 13 of the rearwardly extending lever 14, whose extreme rear is provided with the elongated slot 15, for the reception of the pin 16, which connects the upper end of the arm 17 to the lever 14. The lower end of the arm 17 is pivotally connected at 18 to drive rod 9.

A block 19 is slidably mounted in the segmental slot 20 of the guide 13, and has pivoted therein as clearly shown in Fig. 3, the inner end of the fulcrum rod 21, whose other end is pivotally connected at 22, intermediate of the ends of the short lever 23, the upper end of the short lever 23, being pivoted at 24 to the end of the valve rod 5, which to its lower free end is pivoted one end of the long link 25, whose rear end is pivotally connected at 26 to the arm 17, such connection being slightly below the pin connection of the upper end of the arm 17 to the lever 14.

In order to vary the position of the block 19 within the slot 20 of the guide 13, and thereby limit the throw of the short lever 23, and consequently the movement of the rod 6 and the valve 4, the lower end of the link 27 is pivoted to the block 19, while its upper end is pivotally connected to one arm of the bell-crank lever 28, whose other arm is connected to one end of another link 29, whose movement is controlled by the manually operated lever 30, which is held in the desired adjustment by means of the usual pawl and segment mechanism 31.

In the gear shown in Fig. 4, the short lever 23, and the long link 25 are dispensed with, the valve rod 5, having its free end" pivotally connected directly to the forward end of the fulcrum rod 21, the other parts being identical, and the block 19 being controlled in a similarmanner.

17 to the extension lever let, will as the drive wheel fully rotates travel in the dotted ellipse, while the lower pivotal point of the arm 17 with the drive rod will follow the dotted lined horizontal ellipse. This movement will cause the long link to operate the short lever 23 and move the same within the forward end of the fulcrum rod 2!, its fixed, or nearly so, fulcrum, so that the valve lwill be moved to properly admit pressure fluid through either port a or 7), and yet at the same time immediately convert either port Z) or (L into an exhaust port, so that there will be no back pressure atthe rear of the piston. mentarily in a fixed position during the admission of the pressure fluid into the cylinder and the exhausting therefrom at the non-pressure side through either port a or 7) into the chamber of the valve l and finally out of the exhaust port n1, the valve being so constructed as to cover either port a or Z) and the port By manipulation of the lever to lower the block 19 within the slot of the guide 13, to the center of the slot opposite the pin 12 will cause the farthest forward movement of the fulcrum of the short lever 23, and thus the rocking motion of the guide 18 will impart less movement to the fulcrum rod than when in any position above or below the pin 12, but as the arm 17 will impart to the extension lever 1% the same travel, the only effect that the position of the block 19 within the slot of the guide 13 can have isto increase the admission and exhaust of the pressure fluid to and from the cylinder, and thus control the speed of the piston 2 and consequently the drive wheel 10.

What is claimed, is

1. In a valve gear, the combination with a piston, a drive rod,and a reciprocatory valve, of a swiiigingly mounted slotted guide, a lever carried fixedly thereby and projecting centrally therefrom, an arm slidahly connected to the free end of said lever and pivoted at a fixed point to the drive rod, a short- ].ever having one end connected operably to the valve, a long link connected to the The valve 4: is held inc-- lower end of the short lever and at a point near the upper end of the arm, a block slidably mounted in the slotted guide, a rod having one end pivoted to the block and theot-her end pivoted to the short lever intermediate of its ends, and manually operated means for sliding the block.

2. In a valve gear, the combination with a cylinder having a valve chest, a piston, a valve, a piston rod, and a valve rod, of a guide-Way connected to the cylinder, a swingingly mounted substantially T-shaped lever having a segmental slot provided in its head, a short lever having its upper end pivoted to the valve rod, a block slidably/ mounted in the segmental slot, at fulcrum rod. for the short lever having one end pivoted to the block and the other to the short lever intermediate of its ends, a drive rod pivoted to the piston rod for reciprocatory and swinging movements, an arm having one end slid-ably connected to the free end of the swinging lever and its other end pivoted at a fixed point to the drive rod, a link pivot ally connected to the lower end of the shortleverand having its other end pivoted to the arm near its connection to the swinging lever, and manually operated means for moving the sliding block to change and maintain the position thereof in the slot.

In a valve gear, the combination with a cylinder having a valve chest, a piston, a valve, a piston rod, a drive rod swingingly connected to the piston rod, and a valve rod, of a guide frame connected to the cylinder. an upright carried by the frame at the end remote from the cylinder, a Tshaped lever having its head swingingly connected to the upright and provided with a segmental slot longitudinally of the head, the terminal of the lever projecting beyond the frame, an arm having one end pivoted to the driving rod at fixed point and. its upper end slidably connected to the projected terminal of the T-shaped lover, a block slidably mounted in the segmental slot of the T-shaped lever, means for operably connecting the block to the valve rod, and manually con trolled means for moving and maintainii'ig the block in the slot.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto atlixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

HENRY K. BENTE.

Witnesses:

WILLIAM A. COLLINS. MARK A. MGGRUDER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. G. 

